Stay Alive: Cullen Version
by danielleanne
Summary: The Cullens play a video game that turns out to be cursed. People are turning up dead and an unknown source is trying to kill the vampires. Can they save humanity from this virtual nightmare? There's only one rule in this game and that is to Stay Alive.
1. Chapter 1

_**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the copyrighted characters that I write about. No copyright infringement intended. Please don't sue.**_

**Summary: The Cullen's have entered into the gaming world. They met some new friends and started beta-testing a new game for an unknown company. Little did they know that this was more than just a game, it was more real than they could have imagined. Now, lives are at stake and more and more people are starting to die. Can they save everyone from meeting their dreaded fate? Read on.**

ROSALIE

I was minding my own business in our room researching for the newest hairstyles on the internet when I heard someone screaming down the hall. I closed my laptop, carried it and followed the sounds.

"You better run!" It was Emmett. "Shoot it! Shoot it!"

"Don't use the grenade launcher!" screamed Jasper. "I knew I should have carried it!"

"That is just stupid!" yelled Emmett. "What are we gonna use to kill the boss now?"

"Don't call my brother a moron!" Jasper yelled. "Supergamer! What kind of a name is that anyway?"

I walked down the hall towards the game room where their voices were coming from and I found them both seated in front of the HDTV and Jasper's Alienware laptop propped up next to it.

"Who are you talking to?" I asked them. They turned around and that's when I noticed they were wearing headphones.

"This kid from Seattle," answered Emmett. "We're playing Resident Evil online." That explains the online party.

"Carry on then," I told them. They turned back to the game and started shouting at their teammate again. I went over to Alice's room to see if she was doing anything.

"Go east and buy the drugs from Freddy!" I heard Alice order. What is going on?

"I can't," said Bella. "I'm on my way to the docks to find the stolen van I left when the gangsters killed me." I stepped inside the room and saw Alice on her desktop computer while Bella was on the bed with her laptop propped up her lap.

"What on earth are you doing?" I asked them.

"We're playing Grand Theft Auto," Alice answered without looking at me.

"What is with this family?" I said exasperatedly. "Are Edward and I the only ones who aren't obsessed with playing these silly games?"

"Actually, you're the only one who isn't obsessed with playing these silly games," explained Bella. "Edward's in his room playing with Jasper and Emmett online."

"Since when did you guys start playing video games?"

"Since we've exhausted every possible activities for vampires to do," Alice answered.

"I give up," I said while holding my hand up in surrender. "Hook me up." I told Alice. I opened my laptop, registered and went online and joined their game.


	2. Chapter 2

_**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the copyrighted characters that I write about. No copyright infringement intended. Please don't sue.**_

_**A/N: Okay, I realize that there is no Grand Theft auto online or Resident Evil online. I'm thinking this is an alternate universe for gamers, okay? Almost everything is advanced and I'm really not that creative at making up names for fictional games.**_

JASPER

I put down the controller and started putting away my laptop. Emmett was furiously trying to unravel the wires on our Xbox 360.

"I'm sick of these stupid games!" He said as he threw the console. It crashed and broke into little pieces.

"Carlisle won't be pleased you broke another one," Edward said as he entered the room, his own laptop in his hand. Emmett just shrugged and started cleaning the debris.

"We've played every possible game worth playing." I told Emmett. "Unless you want to play Pokemon Battle Arena, I suggest you wait for the next releases."

"What are you talking about?" asked Edward.

"Emmett's sick of playing the same games," I informed him.

"But I don't want to wait!" Emmett whined. "It takes months to develop a new game. They have to program it, arrange the graphics and beta-test it. Unless…"

"No!" Edward protested. "We are not breaking in to a gaming company!"

"Aw, come on, Edward!" Emmett pleaded. "You know you want to find out if Silent Hill has a new game on the works."

"I don't want to do anything illegal just for a game!" Edward retorted.

"We don't have to do anything illegal," I interrupted them.

"What do you have in mind?" asked Emmett.

"That's a great idea!" said Edward.

"What's a great idea?" asked Emmett. "I can't read minds, you know."

"Companies hire beta-testers right? Let's just find one who's hiring. No matter how stupid the game they give us is, we can still have unlimited access to their other games."

"If they hire us." Edward interjected. "There must be thousands of people wanting to be beta-testers. We aren't even credible to review any game."

"I'll give them credibility!" Emmett said proudly. "I'm the 898th top player in Halo 3. They can check my gamer profile if they want."

"The only thing they'll do when they see your profile is laugh at you," said Edward.

"At least I won't hear them laughing in my head when they see your profile!" Emmett shot back.

"Enough!" I yelled over their squabbling. "Let's make some calls and send our applications already!" We spent almost all of next week calling and emailing every company we've ever heard of. Half the time we were rejected, the other half we were considered only to be beat out by other gamers.

"Did you call Konami?" asked Emmett.

"Yes, I did," I told him. "I also called Rockstar, 989, Capcom and EA."

"Don't even try to ask me," said Edward. "I've CC'd every company I could find and they all sent rejection emails."

"I can't take this anymore!" said Emmett. "I'm this close to taking out my Gameboy!"

"God forbid you'd be forced to play The Legend of Zelda," Edward said sarcastically.

"You used to love that game!" Emmett retorted.

"Why don't we get out of here?" I asked them. "Let's try looking for some games at some café's."

"That's better than waiting for more rejection letters here," said Edward. We grabbed our jackets and headed downstairs. Before we could reach the door, Alice blocked our path.

"Where do you think you're going?" she asked us.

"As if you don't already know," said Emmett.

"I wanna come too," said Alice. "I want to see if I can find some new RPG's."

"Very well," I told her. "Let's go then."

"Hey!" Bella called from the kitchen. "Where are you guys going?"

"We're going to look for some new games," said Edward. "Want to come?"

"God! Turn this into a friggin' field trip, why don't you?" said Emmett.

"You better get the bus ready then, because I'm going with you." Rosalie came out of nowhere and hooked her arm around Emmett's.

"Fine," Emmett said defeated.

EDWARD

We went out in separate cars and drove to Seattle where there were dozens of gaming café's to choose from. We went to the largest one and started asking around but all they had were the same games we had. We talked to some beta-testers but they wouldn't let us play because it was illegal for them to release it.

We drove around the city stopping over several other café's but they gave us the same lists and answers. We were about to give up after the last one when we came across a small shop called Gameprobers. We stepped inside and saw that it was a small coffee shop with more than a dozen computer units in a separate room.

"Hey what can I do for you?" asked a tall, lanky guy behind the counter. Suddenly the entrance opened and two guys came in. One was a tall redhead while the other one was a bit shorter and had dark hair. The shorter one was carrying a large bag.

"Hey Phin, I got some new stuff here," said the dark-haired boy. _He is gonna shit himself when he sees this!_

"Give me a minute," said Phin. He gestured for the other two to sit down and he turned back to us and asked what we needed.

"We're looking for some new games," said Jasper.

"Possibly not yet on the market," said Emmett.

"Ah, so we've got some avid gamers on our hands now, don't we?" said Phin. "I'm afraid all we have are the regular new releases." _Let's see how far they'll go for a game. _I was about to say something but Emmett cut me off.

"Damn it!" Emmett swore. "Do you know anyone who can point us in the right direction? We'll pay for it. I am beyond desperate!"

"I see," said Phin. _Let's see if they're worthy. _"You play online?"

"Yeah, my game tag's Mr.Incredible67." Emmett answered.

"Never heard of you," Phin dismissed him. "How about you guys?" _What the fuck?_, thought Emmett. I wanted to laugh but thought better of it.

"MonsterBiter01," I told him.

"You're the top 8th player on Silent Hill 4," he told me. "Sorry to say, I'm the 3rd. Well actually, I'm not sorry." What the hell was this guy's problem? I still didn't get why he was asking us our game tags and reciting our achievements, but he was starting to get on my nerves. "What about you blondie?" _Is this guy for real? _, thought Jasper.

"Empath1935," Jasper answered dryly. "What's the point of your questions?"

"You're Empath1935?" Phin asked, obviously amazed. "I'm ButterMcMuffin504! WE played Halo3 last month! You're the reason I even got into the top twenty."

"Yeah, that was nothing," said Jasper. "After I got the top spot, I started playing support."

"You're like the Halo 3 god of Washington!" said Phin. Jasper just shrugged. Jasper was the best among the three of us. It was no surprise that he would gain fame in the online gaming world. "I'm Phineus, by the way."

"I'm Jasper; this here's Edward and the big one's Emmett." We all nodded at him.

"Back to your question. I asked to see if you were credible," stated Phineus.

"For what?" asked Emmett, still miffed that Phin didn't recognize his game tag.

"For this," said Phin. "Hutch! Loomis!" He called to someone behind us. The two guys who came in earlier stood up and walked over to us.


	3. Chapter 3

_**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the copyrighted characters that I write about. No copyright infringement intended. Please don't sue.**_

_**A/N: Just so you guys know, this fic is based on the movie Stay Alive. The supporting characters like Hutch, Loomis, Phin, October, Abigail, Swink etc. are all from the movie. I suggest you watch the movie so you can understand the story better.**_

_**A/N: I got lazy about putting Phineus whole name in the story, so don't be surprised if later on I write Phin instead of his whole name.**_

EMMETT

"What's up?" said the redhead.

"Hey," said the dark-haired boy.

"This is Loomis Crowley and Hutch MacNeil, they're lovers but don't tell them I told you so," said Phineus.

"Very funny," said the redhead. "I'm Hutch, this is Loomis." We all introduced ourselves to them and Phineus proceeded to explain what we needed.

"These fine young gentlemen have a proposition to make," said Phineus. He turned to us and added, "You're still gonna pay, right? Just because I idolize Mr. Halo here doesn't mean we're chummy enough to not do business."

"What are you talking about, Phin?" asked Hutch.

"They want to buy some illegal games," said Phineus.

"Are you kidding me?" exclaimed the dark-haired boy. He turned to us and apologized. "I'm sorry you guys, I can't help you out."

"They're going to pay," said Phin. "Come one, Loomis. You need money to pay for your Kleenex and lube." Loomis glared at him and turned to us. I guess the redhead was the one named Hutch.

"I beta-test these games and I'm not really authorized to distribute it without approval from the big guys," explained Loomis. "I'm not even sure if you're gonna like any of them." Edward snorted and looked at me. I asked him if he was telling the truth through my thoughts, he shook his head discreetly and I turned back to the guys.

"I'll pay you a thousand dollars," I blurted out. The guy named Loomis almost fell over.

"Whaat??" he asked incredulously.

"I said we'll pay you a thousand dollars," I told him. "The only problem with that is that we won't settle for some poorly generated Donkey Kong 3D or any other crap. We want the hardcore, state-of-the-art, extreme hazard type of game. Preferably, one that will never be approved by the ESRB."

"I like the words that are coming out of your mouth!" said Phineus. "What's the verdict, beta dude?" I guessed he was talking to Loomis.

"I've got just the thing," he told us. He started rummaging around his bag which was filled with papers and CD cases. He finally took out a case that had some lines scribbled on the cover.

"What is this?" Jasper asked as Loomis passed him the case.

"It's called Stay Alive." Loomis answered. "I've only seen the screenshots but judging from the graphics, it's HD. It's an online RPG game which means unlimited number of players. It's also a survival horror game and also a strategy game."

"Hot doggit!" I exclaimed. "It's an all-in-one video game buffet!"

"How do we know you're not pulling our leg?" Edward asked him.

"You can try it out, if you want," offered Loomis. "Some of us are going to play later."

"How many players can join in on one game?" I asked him.

"It's an online RPG game," explained Loomis. "Any number of players can play as long as their connected to the original game."

"When are you going to play?" Edward asked.

"We're doing it here after the shop closes," said Phineus. "Which is in about an hour. Loomis you can make some bootlegs while we wait."

"Who else is gonna play?" Loomis asked us.

"Our girlfriends are gonna want to play," said Edward.

"Can they take the heat?" asked Phineus. "We can't exactly have girls screaming at the sight of digitized blood."

"A little blood isn't gonna scare us." We turned around and saw Alice, Bella and Rosalie standing behind us.

"It's fine," said Hutch. "October and Abigail are playing as well."

"Did someone say my name?" A willowy, girl with black hair dressed as a Goth came out of the back door that led to the store room.

"Guys, this is October, my sister," said Phineus. We introduced the girls as well.

"Now that we're all on a first-name basis, let's count it off," said Loomis. "We've got ten players here. So that leaves Swink and Abigail."

"Miller's playing too," said Hutch. "But he's doing it from the office."

"Awesome, we've got one big video game orgy going on here!" Phineus exclaimed. October slapped the back of his head which made the girls laugh and the guys shake there heads.

"Try and manage to have a little tact, why don't you?" said October.

"Geez, women!" Phineus groaned. Loomis started booting up the computer behind the counter and made copies for each of us. Hutch left for a few minutes to give the game to Miller, which happened to be his boss.

"Can we use our own consoles?" asked Jasper. "I don't feel comfortable using anyone else's."

"It's fine," said Phineus. "We all use our own. Check out my baby," He pulled out a large leather bag from under the counter. He opened the zipper which revealed a customized laptop like ours. The design on his had a woman reaching her hands out and behind her was a swirl of neon green colors.

"That's pretty nice," said Jasper. "Let's get ours and the girls'." He told me. Edward and I followed him outside and took our laptops and the girls'.

"Thanks, babe," Rosalie said to me as I handed her laptop. I had to say it was pretty cute. It was pink and had two inverted C's on it. I never really knew what it stood for.

"It's Chanel, dumbass," Edward told me. The little turd was reading my mind again. "Well you're one big turd."

"Stop doing that!" I told him. "Only you would know what a chick logo means."

"That's because I'm cultured and aware of my wife's favorite brands." I stuck my tongue out at him and he just shook his head. The door of the shop opened and a boy wearing a visor and a blonde girl came in.

"Wassup, momma?" Phin said to the girl.

"My foot in your ass, poppa!" The girl replied sarcastically.

"Guys, this is the love of my life, Abigail, only she doesn't realize it yet," Phin told us. "The hobbit's name is Swink."

"What a comedian," Swink said sarcastically. "Swink Sylvania," He said as he held out his hand to shake. We all introduced ourselves and Loomis told them about us playing.

JASPER

October and Phin started closing shop. Hutch arrived just in time for us to set up. We all took our separate spots in the coffee shop and booted our laptops. We put on our headphones and went online.

"Miller, you there?" Hutch asked.

"I'm here," said a voice in our headphones. "I had to make my secretary call my wife to say I got caught up in a meeting."

"Enough with the chit-chat," said Phin. "Let's start. The name of the game is Stay Alive. We don't know much about it except we aren't supposed to have it."

"That's an understatement," said Loomis. We inserted the copies of the CD's and started the game. The screen came up and showed us a parchment that contained some text written in blood.

"Killer graphics!" exclaimed Swink. I tried pushing some buttons but the screen stayed put.

"Any of you getting through?" I asked them.

"No, it's stuck," said Loomis. "This sucks."

"Maybe it's voice activated," Hutch suggested.

"That's impossible," Swink countered. "Our consoles aren't equipped with that kind of technology." Suddenly, we heard Alice speak.

"Come to me, clouds," she recited. We looked over at her screen and saw the words disappear. She must have foreseen this.

"No fucking way," said Phin.

"This is impossible!" said Swink.

"Well it's working," said Bella. "Let's all say it together." We repeated the words on the screen and they slowly disappeared. After we spoke the words, the screen changed into the cinematics of the game. It showed several locations and images of the game while the narrator spoke.

"Welcome. If you're listening to this, you've made a grave mistake. You spoke the words, and now you will die."

"This is starting to creep me out," said Swink. We all shushed him and listened to the rest.

"There is now an evil coursing through your veins that will not allow you to escape. This is the legend of The Garouge. Hundreds of years ago, Countess Elizabeth Bathory opened a finishing school for young women, The Garouge. Little did the townspeople know what transpired within these walls. The acts done to these girls were so depraved that all evidence and accounts were stricken from public view."

"Wait, I've heard of this story," said October. "Phin, remember when Grandma used to tell us stories, that if we were bad something like the Garouge was going to take us away?"

"I also remember that she wore her underwear over her pants. Let's skip the cinematic foreplay! I wanna butter this muffin!" So his game tag was also his slogan. Typical gamer. I shook my head as we all listened to the rest of the narration.

"Salvation lies within these walls, but first you must uncover the truth and stop the evil. In order to do this, you must Stay Alice." After that, the menu popped up.

"Finally!" Emmett exclaimed. We customized our characters then started the game.

"You didn't say we were going to be separated!" Rosalie complained.

"Get a grip, princess," said Abigail. "It's just a game." I felt the Rosalie's anger surge so I sent a wave of calm over to her. She nodded in my direction to show her gratitude.

"Rosalie just started playing video games last week," Emmett explained. "Don't worry, babe. I got your back."

"Fine' let's roll call our locations so we know where to go in case someone needs support." Loomis instructed.

"God, you guys take this so seriously," said Bella.

"That's the gaming world for you," said Hutch. "I'm in front of the mansion." Everyone else said their locations. We were basically just a few yards away from each other so it would be easy to meet up.

"Let the games begin," Phin announced. All our controllers started vibrating simultaneously.

"What's happening?" asked Alice.

"It means something's coming," said Hutch.

"I was in the cemetery with Edward. This was going to be easy. We were a great team when it came to survival games. I ran over to him but a corpse of a little girl started walking towards me. I equipped myself with a shotgun and started blasting off its head. After I killed it, a rose appeared. Suddenly, the narrator spoke.

"When fear cripples you, when death's dark shadow surrounds you, drop a rose. It will help you…stay alive."

"We should drop one when we meet a boss we can't face," said Swink.

"Yeah, the undead can't cross the twig of a wild rose," October explained.

"That's what you get from reading too much Goth chick lit," said Phin. We all laughed and continued on with the game. Within the first few minutes, we were already swarmed with dead little girls. The whole room was filled with surprised screams from the girls and continuous swearing from the guys.


	4. Chapter 4

_**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the copyrighted characters that I write about. No copyright infringement intended. Please don't sue.**_

JASPER

"Miller,you ass! Don't close the fucking door!" yelled Phin. Everyone was getting riled up by the game. Who wouldn't? The graphics were awesome and it was the most challenging game we've ever played.

"God damn it, it closed by itself." Miller replied. "I'm locked in." Suddenly the controllers started vibrating again. It hadn't vibrated since the start of the game.

"Dude, I think we better drop a rose or something," said Hutch. We all did as he said and the controllers stopped vibrating.

"Fuck, I'm out roses," said Miller.

"So am I," said Rosalie. "Hey Abigail, can you give me some?"

"I can't," said Abigail. "I've only got one left."

"A lot of help, you are," grumbled Rosalie. The only ones who heard her were us vampires.

"Miller, tell us what's in that room before you bail out of there," said Swink.

"It's some sort of torture chamber," said Miller. "Fuck!"

"What happened?" asked Hutch.

"I just saw a flash of dead girls," said Miller. "I'm telling you man. These graphics look too real."

"Anything important we need to know about that place?" asked Phin.

"Juts a couple of locked doors," said Miller. "Good God! Some bitch just killed me; I think it was the boss or something. It wasn't like the little bitches."

"Darn it! Some woman pushed me off the banister and hung me above the foyer!" said Rosalie.

"It was bound to happen sooner or later," said Abigail. I was about to send another wave of calm to Rosalie but she held her hand up. She mouthed the words, "I'm okay," before setting down her controller.

"Unorthodox ways to die in a game," said Swink. "Very interesting."

"Whatever," said Phin. "Now, let's get back in the game."

"Fine," said Miller. "Hey! Is anyone out there?"

"Who are you talking to?" asked Hutch.

"I don't know," said Miller. "I think it's some goddamned rent-a-cop trying to scare the shit out of the living."

"Poor boss-man's freaking out," Phin taunted.

"Shut up, asshole," said Miller. "You know what they say about the game. You play it too long, you start seeing shit."

"That's actually true," said Swink. "Take perceptive reality for example. The more you play a game, the more your mind thinks its actually happening."

"I agree," said Edward. "I've read it actually yields some other interesting ideas." Only Edward would get along with the geek in the group.

"Very funny, Jasper." Edward said under his breath. I forgot; mind-reading brother. I looked at him apologetically.

"I'm sure you've read it all," said Emmett. I couldn't help but snicker with the guys. Swink and Edward just groaned and shook their heads.

"That's very interesting, you guys," said October. "But it's actually getting a little late."

"Yeah, some of us have to work tomorrow," said Hutch. We all agreed and started packing up our stuff. Loomis approached us and asked what we thought of the game.

"You've got a deal, beta-dude!" said Emmett. He gave Loomis the money and thanked him.

"Just don't give it to anyone else, okay?" Loomis warned. "I don't really need a lawsuit right now."

"No problem," Emmett told him.

"Hey, if you guys wanna play again, just drop by anytime," said Phin. We promised we would.

MILLER

I packed up my stuff and got ready to leave. I closed the lights in my office and locked the door. Just as I was about to go to the elevator, the door to my office opened up. Weird. I went back and locked it again. Suddenly, I felt someone else's presence in the hall. I turned around and saw my reflection.

"God damn perceptive reality," I muttered. I walked away and then the door opened again. "What the hell?" I went back and closed it but then I heard something vibrate. I went inside and looked around. It was still vibrating. I looked under the table and saw the controller.

"Stupid wireless controller," I grumbled. I put in on the desk and took out the batteries. I set it down and started to walk towards the door. Suddenly, the vibrating started again. "What the fuck?" I turned around and saw the woman from the game holding a pair of shears. "Mother-AHHHHH!!!!"

EMMETT

When we got home, my brothers and I started setting up the game again. We didn't have to work in the morning and we sure as hell didn't need to sleep so we decided to play. A little while later we heard Rosalie scream. We stopped playing and ran over to her. Rosalie never screamed like that.

"Emmett! Help me!" she pleaded. Rosalie was hanging on a chain on top of the stairs.

"Stay put, Rosie! I'm getting you down!" I ran over to her and pulled the chain down. I ripped it off saw that her neck was broken and her head almost ripped off. Bella, Alice, Esme and Carlisle ran over to us as well.

"What the hell happened?" I asked her.

"I…I…" Rosalie was in shock. I didn't know why this happened. It couldn't have been on purpose and no one else was here but our family. If someone was, we would have known about it.

"Who did this to you?" I asked her.

"The… the…woman in the game!" Rosalie managed to say. How was that possible? Maybe she was freaked out by the game and started hallucinating and did this to herself.

"She didn't do it to herself," said Edward. "I saw the image in her mind."

"That's not possible, Edward," said Jasper. "Maybe Rosalie was thinking of the game."

"I did not imagine this, Jazz!" Rosalie screeched.

"Let's talk about this later," said Carlisle. "Let me fix your head, Rosalie." I carried her over to our room and left her to be tended by Carlisle.

"What did you see in her head again, Edward?" I asked him.

"Rosalie was pushed into the air and hung with chains," said Edward. "I don't know how this happened, but we have to find out. Let's search the whole house just in case what we're dealing with isn't human or vampire. We would have smelled it if it was." We searched the whole house from top to bottom but we ended up finding nothing.

"Who would want to hurt, Rosie?" I asked them.

"That Abigail girl was giving off some nasty vibes towards her," said Jasper.

"How could she be capable of doing this?" Edward asked.

"I think we need to pay that girl a visit," I told them.

"We'll do it tomorrow," said Edward. "We're not even sure how this happened." I nodded and stayed with Rosalie the whole night. I didn't dare leave her side.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Yes, it took very long to write this measly chapter but I am not sorry because it would have sucked even worse than it does now if I rushed it. Please tell me otherwise. Haha. The suckage part, I mean. I hope I'll be able to post the rest of my stories soon.**

HUTCH

That game we played last night really did a number on me. I couldn't sleep a wink because all I could see were those bloody, little girls yowling and crawling towards us. As I rode the elevator up to the office, I wondered how the others reacted to the game. The Cullen's looked like nothing could really scare them but Loomis's game must have freaked them out too. Miller actually sounded like he shit his pants when he was stabbed by that freaky boss.

Finally, the elevator doors dinged and opened. When I stepped out, I saw that the office that was usually abuzz with the morning rush was now subdued and the people were morbid than usual, or maybe ever?

"Hutch!" someone cried in the direction of the executive offices. It was Loretta, Miller's secretary. She ran over to me and grabbed me while crying, "Oh, Hutch! It's horrible!" Looking at Loretta, I knew I shouldn't have but I had to ask.

"What happened?" I asked as I pried myself away from her and headed towards where the people were all gathered. That's when I noticed that those people weren't my officemates. They were the police.

"What's going on? Miller!" I called out hoping my boss would answer me, but I knew that somehow, he wouldn't. I pushed my way towards his office but two uniformed officers grabbed me and pulled me away.

"This is a crime scene. You're not allowed here," said one of the officers.

"What are you talking about? That's Miller's office. I just talked to him a few hours ago."

"Sir, please…" I didn't want to listen to the person talking. I kept pushing until I saw what was inside Miller's office. Miller was sprawled on top of this desk with his throat cut.

"Oh god!" I cried and then turned away trying to suppress the bile that was pushing its way up my throat. I didn't notice the tall dark man wearing a suit standing next to me.

"Son? We have to ask you a few questions," he told me. "My name is Detective Thibodeaux."

OCTOBER

"Malleus Malefica.. Malefico..Oh, what the heck.." I was standing in front of my bookcase which was filled with fictional and historical literature that depicted the dark arts, whether in magic or folklore. I was looking for folklore. The Legend of Garouge piqued my curiosity. I couldn't stop thinking about it since last night.

"Aha! There you are!" Finally, I found it. The Witch's Hammer. Anything that dealt with a horrific legend about a woman could be found in this book. I hadn't actually read it because I bought it last year on Ebay and forgot about it because I was reading a new book about vampires who sparkled in the sun. Yeah, right. Who would even believe that crap? I should have read this one instead.

"What's that?" asked Loomis. He was hanging out at the shop because that was what he usually did almost everyday. Who could blame him? The guy was rich and played video games for a living. Where else could he possibly go? Probably to a comic convention or something.

"Malleus Maleficarum," I whispered as I browsed through the gruesome images and words jumping out at me from the book. It wasn't different from watching a car crash. Somehow, I just couldn't take my eyes off of it all. Women were hanged by their toes as their throats were cut, little girls were tied together and dragged through the streets like a bunch of recently killed wild game and there were numerous drawings of women who were being burned at the stake in different ways, each one more terrifying and more painful than the last.

"Wow," Loomis said as he looked at the book over my shoulder. "So that's the kind of literature you read." I hit him with the book and went over to the counter and started flipping the pages, looking for The Legend of Garouge.

Loomis went back to tinkering with his laptop while I continued to scan the book. I couldn't find any trace of it, but then I remembered that the game said that all public accounts were stripped from the public's eyes or something.

"Huh.." I muttered to myself. The games storyline could either be true or not but there were other bits of information I could still find. Then I saw a name that stood out from the Mathildes and Rowenas. Countess Elizabeth Bathory.

It said in the book that she was accused of killing 600 virgins and then using their blood as her beauty bath. Eew, I'm goth not emo. That is so not my thing. I kept reading and ended up on a painting of Elizabeth Bathory. She was gorgeous! With her auburn hair that looked like flames contained in her aristocratic bun, and her luscious red lips that sparkled as though the image was alive, just looking at her made me think twice about how I really felt about Hutch! Okay, this is not the time to think about Hutch.

I expected to find a horrible picture of her being scrubbed with steel wool or something but all the book showed was a field of stone houses with a high tower at the very back. When I read the text, I gasped in shock. Not only were the stone houses not houses but tombs, they were said to be the tombs of the six hundred girls that Elizabeth Bathory allegedly massacred. And the tower was Elizabeth Bathory's final resting place. And she was alive when they locked her inside.

I suddenly felt hand on my shoulder and I screamed. And I also threw the book at the face of whomever it was who touched me.

"What the hell, October!" Phin cried out in pain as he swore while holding his forehead. "Did you forget you medication again?!"

I probably looked like a goldfish, opening and closing my mouth, hardly able to say anything.

"I…I thought…I mean I'm…I'm sorry!" I blurted out. I couldn't actually say that I thought you were Countess Elizabeth Bathory come to exact revenge on a girl she hardly knew because she died oh, almost four hundred years ago!

"Too much coffee," I finally said. Phin was still rubbing his head and cursing as he headed for the consoles to boot them up.

"What was up with that?" Loomis asked, his eyes on his laptop, now that the show was over.

"I said I had too much coffee." I said a little strongly. Loomis held his hand up and continued what he was doing.

"Where's the blonde girl!?"

I couldn't help it. I screamed again. Right in front of the counter, where I was facing a second ago, the guys we played the video game with were standing looking pissed off and I had no idea how they got there.

"October, what the fuck is your damage today!!" Phin screamed from inside the shop. And that's all that I remembered before everything faded to black.

**A/N: Follow me on Twitter and check out my new Blogger page. Also I'm active on Facebook now. The links are on my profile page. Thanks!**


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